


The Calm and the Fire

by summerwines



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Alternate Universe - Space, Explicit Sexual Content, Happy Ending, Human Experimentation, Implied/Referenced Torture, M/M, Prosthesis, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-21
Updated: 2017-11-21
Packaged: 2019-01-31 16:24:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12685659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/summerwines/pseuds/summerwines
Summary: When a lonely cargo pilot meets a runaway human experiment, both their lives change forever. As Kyungsoo and Chanyeol drift across a dying universe, terror comes, but so does love and the sweet taste of freedom.





	The Calm and the Fire

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Exonaut 2017, prompt #125. This might be a little bit more than what the prompter expected, but I do hope I did the prompt justice! This may also have a bit of science that totally won't be feasible in real life, but I ran with it anyway. :-)
> 
> Wrote this with two theme songs in mind: The Main Theme from "Castle in the Sky" by Joe Hisaishi; and Roxas' Theme from Kingdom Hearts.
> 
> And finally, I'd like to give a shoutout to the mods for organizing this awesome fest; they've been very supportive and wonderful, so give them love!
> 
> EDIT (02/02/2018): This is now available in Spanish [on Wattpad](https://www.wattpad.com/story/136739475-the-calm-and-the-fire-chansoo-traducci%C3%B3n) (translated by the lovely rilapark_00).

**_"When you can't run, you crawl. And when you can't crawl, when you can't do that, you find someone to carry you."_ **

**- _Firefly, 2003_**

 

★★★★★

The muffled voice of the newsman speaks to them in a foreign tongue. One of many that Kyungsoo became fluent in as needed for his job. Static comes through the speakers but Kyungsoo still makes out the details of the latest news from across the universe: another planet in the Emerald system taken over by rebel forces. Emerald, one of five star systems in the Alliance’s realm, is the center of government activity, making this takeover an even greater blow. In this day and age of dying civilization, planets in far-reaching galaxies in the midst of implosion, Kyungsoo takes this news as a source of comfort. The reign of the Alliance, it seems, isn’t set in stone until the end of mankind. Still, there is some kind of hope, however cruel and bleak this hope might seem to others.

The white noise from the speakers worsens but Kyungsoo manages to sleep through it. Beside him, Chanyeol drives their truck through a beach city, their ship parked a mile away at the local port. They pass the city’s shanty houses, the roads bumpy and jagged, before they reach the industrial center, the smoke of a hundred factories billowing against the sky.

Kyungsoo dozes off in the middle of trip. In his dream, he finds himself back in Guro. More than a year ago, he’d gone there to drop off crates of fuel for the Alliance labs. The job was supposed to be quick and simple, except: as he prepared to leave, seconds away from approaching his ship, the deafening sound of lasers reverberated across the port and a poisonous gas scattered all around him. Kyungsoo was caught in the middle of a battle between Alliance guards and a group of rebels prepared to kill anyone who got in their way. It was the most frightened he’d ever been and he could barely remember anything that happened during the scuffle, except for the fact that he’d been shot and wounded and that the wounds, somehow, felt much more painful in contact with the gas. But nevertheless, he managed to compose himself and escape onto his ship, though his body was limping and his lungs were out of breath.

Only when he’d flown out of orbit did he realize that his face was caked with tears and his back was covered in a cold sweat. Blood had started to coat his shirt but it did not register to him from where the blood had come as his eyes started to blur. It did not register to him that he’d only been working his controls with one stifled hand. The only thing that he perceived was a searing pain and the need to shed tears. As the ship slowed, the stars of the Emerald system flashing bright green through his viewscreen, he could only cry and will himself to stay alive. It was only a matter of time until he lost consciousness. At that moment, he thought to himself: _I’m alone, again. And I’m dying. Now isn’t this great?_

By some strange twist of fate, his time to die was not yet due. Instead, he felt someone touch his cheek and pull him up. He felt the warmth of a body and he could make out the blur of a man who seemed to shiver and sweat as he held Kyungsoo’s weight. Kyungsoo heard the man gasp and curse and in an attempt to comfort, he whispered, voice hoarse: _“I’m here to help, so please stay alive.”_

Back in present day, Kyungsoo wakes up with a start, feeling a hand touch his arm. Of course, there is no one else who could have touched him but Chanyeol, clad in his beige buttoned jacket, protective goggles strapped over his forehead. His hair is a mess of dark brown curls; his eyes are a bright shade of orange -- something Kyungsoo still isn’t used to even after a whole year.

“We’re here,” Chanyeol says, referring to their place of business: the canning factory for local seafood. Its metal structure looks old and decrepit; the smell of fish wafts through Kyungsoo’s nose even from the truck. He thinks, perhaps, he should make this quick.

As always, the job is simple: Kyungsoo and Chanyeol bring down the shipment of artificial flavoring and preservatives. Kyungsoo has the supplies manager, a furry creature with deep-set eyes, sign multiple forms and he tries to negotiate for higher pay for their toils across two star systems, from Ultramarine until the far ends of Goldenrod. He speaks in the language of the region, his words stilted due to the lack of consonants in his own native tongue. Over the years, he’s had to master the art of persuasion in many a language, so in no time, he gets to leave the stinking vicinity with little to sweat and a good sum of currency inside his account.

The whole time, however, Chanyeol appears to be out of sorts, leaning against a metal wall and staring into space as he waits for Kyungsoo to finish the transaction. “Are you okay?” Kyungsoo asks him, though he already has a clue on the answer and the reason why Chanyeol is not his usual energetic self.

“I’m okay,” Chanyeol says, with a nod and a smile. He rubs his hands against his thighs. “You up for a trip to the beach?”

Driving again through the city, Kyungsoo finds himself staring at the faces of the local people, going through their day-to-day activities at the marketplace and the villages, the furry bodies of children running around the pavements barefooted. Out west, they find an empty part of the beach. As soon as they park, Chanyeol shucks off his shoes and leaves the vehicle to make his way for the sand, a large expanse of emptiness on a cold day. Kyungsoo follows him, tugging onto his bomber jacket amidst the winds. The sun is faint; the clouds are full and frothy in the sky.

When they reach a certain point, Chanyeol drops to the sand and folds his legs against his chest. Kyungsoo stands by him and both of them stare at the crashing waves a few feet away.

“I’ve only seen oceans thrice in my life,” Chanyeol says, looking up at him, smiling. “Once when the scientists took us to this planet--Yeongam, I think it was called. They made us do demonstrations.”

Kyungsoo sinks onto the sand with him, the corners of his eyes furrowing. “You’ve never mentioned that before.”

“It was beautiful, you know. I remember crying when I saw the ocean from up in the sky. But then, the horrible part was--They brought us there to destroy everything. I _burned_ everything. And they had a chip lodged into my brain so I couldn’t refuse. And my friend--He froze the whole planet before we left. All of that beauty just _froze_. Turned into ice just as soon as I burnt a whole forest. I cried again, when we left.”

Chanyeol’s hands, firm on his knees, start to turn red. For this, Kyungsoo knows just what to do.

He puts two hands on Chanyeol’s back. Then, he rests his head on him and closes his eyes.

“What was the second time?” Kyungsoo asks.

Chanyeol shakes his head. “Have you forgotten? I was with you, silly.”

Kyungsoo smiles, caressing Chanyeol, the wind now feeling less cold than it did before. “Yeah, I do remember.”

“In New Incheon.”

“Where the seagulls were massive”

“And we thought it’d be a good idea to swim. And it was, until a certain point. But we were naked and we didn’t expect--”

“The seagulls.”

Chanyeol laughs. Kyungsoo wraps him up in a tight hug.

“We’re seeing Baekhyun tomorrow, yeah?” Chanyeol says.

“Yeah. And he’ll tell us what he knows about the others--your friends, that is.”

“And why can’t he just send us the details again?”

“It’s too dangerous, Chanyeol. We can’t risk it being tracked.”

Chanyeol heaves out a sigh. “Yes, of course. But what makes you so sure we can trust him not to say anything?”

Kyungsoo is sure. If he were to name someone other than Chanyeol whom he could truly trust without a sliver of doubt, it would be Baekhyun. “I trust him with my life,” he says.

He lets Chanyeol go, then, and proceeds to rest his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder. The beach is quiet except for the sound of the waves and distant fluttering of wings. Kyungsoo takes Chanyeol’s hand in an attempt to soothe his nerves. Together, they stare into the ocean.

“I trust _you_ with my life,” Chanyeol says.

“We’re the same then,” Kyungsoo says.

It’s been true since that fateful day that they found each other, aboard the ship where they’d eventually share many nights in the calm of each other’s company.

Chanyeol had given him so much: freedom from loneliness, a newfound love for life. He even gave Kyungsoo a new arm when he lost it on the day they met. The severity of his injury and the poisonous gas caused the tissues to become diseased, so Chanyeol molded a new one for him that made it seem that Kyungsoo hadn’t lost anything at all. Looking at his hand tangled with Chanyeol’s fingers, Kyungsoo is reminded just how grateful he is and how he’d do anything to put at rest all the the chaos in Chanyeol’s busy brain. Tomorrow, he hopes all their questions will be answered and Kyungsoo hopes to be yet another step towards the payment of a debt.

 

★★★★★

The Exodus is a cargo ship large enough to fit a whole crew, complete with bunks, an infirmary, and a kitchen space. But due to decreasing populations and budget cuts, Kyungsoo was hired to be its lone occupant, leading him to five years of relative silence in a space full of nothing but dust and cargo crates. The whole ship is meant to be a menacing force, shaped almost as a dragon in its distorted cylindrical form, the cockpit elevated in the likeness of a head. Its engines appear as wings, barrel-shaped, releasing bursts of blue fire as the ship drifts through open space. The years, however, subjected the exteriors to rust and decrepit. Nonetheless, Kyungsoo flies with nary a complaint.

The circumstances of his employment were clear to him when he entered the job. It was a non-issue at the time, since all he thought about was the sense of purpose the job would be able to give him and that it would be a good place to live out his days. He'd grown up orphaned, his parents killed when he was very small during the first years of the Alliance's regime. He knows Alliance soldiers were the ones who killed them and that it happened during a battle for Ilsan--his home-planet's--land. Growing up, this was a fact that had always been slapped onto his face, going through one failed adoption interview after another. He was always too dark, his caretakers told him. _With that kind of attitude, you’ll never find a family._

This is why he thought he had nothing to lose, as he slapped an application on the table of a local agent. He was twenty-one, the legal age for outer space employment. What put an even stronger nail into the coffin was the fact that his best friends, Baekhyun and Jongdae, were moving away as required by Baekhyun's new job.

“You know this is crazy, right?” Baekhyun told him, in what was once their shared home, a bungalow in the suburb of Ilsan’s capital. They sat in their dining room, cups of coffee in their hands, Kyungsoo’s barely touched.

“It’s really not,” Kyungsoo said. “It makes all the sense in the world to me.”

And Baekhyun should have understood more than anyone else, given the nature of his own job: a systems technician for a government that is anything but clean, anything but honorable.

Baekhyun held his hand. “It’s different. I have Jongdae to keep me company. What about you?”

“I have me,” Kyungsoo said, shying away. “And the sky.”

“But don’t you want more? Like I said, Kyungsoo, you could--”

“Live with you guys? I couldn’t.”

“Why not?”

Kyungsoo thought about that question a lot: _Why not?_ It was a question fraught with meaning, something he thought about again as he held his cup of coffee with firm hands.

“Soo?”

Kyungsoo smiled. “I’ve mulled that over, of course I have. It’s just...It wouldn’t be right. And you know what?”

“What?”

“I think…” He drank his coffee, finally, before he completed his thought. “Somehow, I think there’s something out there for me. Something bigger. Something I can’t get anywhere else.”

 

★★★★★

Their time on Jinhae, a planet known for its brightly-colored flowers and woodsy terrain, turns into more than a brief stop to gather information. It turns into a holiday, upon insistence from Baekhyun and Jongdae. When this was suggested, Kyungsoo and Chanyeol shared a look and Kyungsoo thought about how much time and money he’d already squandered taking short trips with Chanyeol. But he got a good sum of money from the canning factory, so he reckons one more vacation would not hurt. Chanyeol nodded when Kyungsoo said this, as they sat on a blue velvet couch in a quietly decorated living room. Baekhyun and Jongdae have lived here for more than five years, in a cottage with walls painted white, potted plants by every window, ceilings with rough wooden beams.

On the second day, Kyungsoo wakes up and sees that Chanyeol is no longer in their room. His bed has been made up, no indication left on where he might have gone. Immediately, Kyungsoo grabs his coat and wears it over his nightshirt. He then walks to the kitchen and dining area, where he sees Baekhyun and Jongdae sharing kisses over a steaming pot of what smells like chicken soup. They wear only their shorts and sleeveless shirts, which Kyungsoo fails to understand considering the cold. Baekhyun has his hands firmly gripping Jongdae’s hips as he pushes Jongdae against a countertop. Jongdae cradles Baekhyun’s face, both of them blissful and soft under the rays of the sun from the kitchen window.

He has to feign a cough to get their attention and when he does, they laugh at him, mumbling to each other: _hey, it’s Kyungsoo, should we stop kissing, maybe, maybe not, I love you so much._

“You don’t have to worry though,” Baekhyun says, sneaking another kiss at the edge of Jongdae’s lips. “Your boy’s just out in the backyard.”

“Don’t be such a worrywart, Kyungsoo, dearie,” Jongdae says, looking at Baekhyun like he’s a piece of dessert and Jongdae’s the spoon.

Kyungsoo sighs. Sometimes, he wonders why he ever chose these two to be his closest friends. Though such thoughts are only ever momentary, as Baekhyun adds, in between kisses, “I’ll have a fabulous breakfast ready in ten minutes, so you better get Chanyeol in here.”

As he comes through the back door, Kyungsoo immediately sees Chanyeol’s figure, squatting down at the corner of the forest clearing that Baekhyun and Jongdae call their backyard. There are a pair of pliers and the remnants of a broken lightbulb beside him. He wears his magnifying goggles, out of place with his red wool sweater and black trousers. He adjusts the goggles and lets go of his screwdriver, placing it gently on the ground. One minute, he seems hard at work with finishing touches, but then as Kyungsoo approaches him, he starts to exclaim: “I did it!”

He gesticulates and hops onto his feet. He turns, then, and sees Kyungsoo, though his eyes still hide behind the dark goggles. Grinning, Chanyeol tackles him into a hug, which Kyungsoo accepts with a smile.

“Good morning to you too,” Kyungsoo says, holding on to Chanyeol’s back.

Chanyeol holds his shoulders and smiles some more as he nods. He proceeds to remove the goggles, hair mussed up as he does so, brown strands flying up in the air. This reveals the bright orange color of his eyes, widened to signal his joy.

“I finished Toben,” Chanyeol says, his voice soft but frantic.

Kyungsoo scrunches his eyebrows. “Toben?”

“The robot dog.”

“Oh. Robot dog?”

“The one I was working on all night. Not that you would know. Have I told that you sleep too much, Soo?”

“I sleep to live.”

Chanyeol mocks, “Oh, look at me, I’m Kyungsoo and I need eight hours of sleep every night, boo hoo.”

“What’s gotten into you?” Kyungsoo laughs.

“Toben! Start up!” Chanyeol gets out of Kyungsoo’s way, presenting his creation, and Kyungsoo hears the buzzing noise of a machine coming to life. Kyungsoo sees exactly what Chanyeol was talking about: a robot dog, its body almost lifelike, except he sees the nuts and bolts attached to its body.

“C’mon.” Chanyeol grabs Kyungsoo by the hand. “Let’s take it for a spin.”

Kyungsoo follows Chanyeol into a path through the woods, the sound of rustling leaves and the soft breeze enveloping them. Through the parting trees, Kyungsoo sees the outline of grassy mountains. Above him, the clouds are cumulus and thick. Ahead of them is Toben, who seems sensitive to Chanyeol’s voice as it follows Chanyeol’s directions to move, stop, go forward, flip in the air.

Kyungsoo sits on a flat gray stone while Chanyeol crouches down in front of him, petting Toben’s head. The dog seems to have sensors for motion and pleasure, as it blinks in a slow, daydreamy fashion as Chanyeol pets it.

“Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo starts.

“Yeah?” he goes, still petting Toben, this time on its back.

“What Baekhyun said--are you still thinking about it?”

“Huh? Oh. A bit, yeah.” He sits cross-legged on the ground and looks at Kyungsoo with a worry-stricken face. “Are you?” he adds.

“How could I not?” Kyungsoo says.

Just yesterday, Baekhyun had given them the details of what he was able to uncover. It was, however, not what they expected.

“This is what I got.” Baekhyun lit up his hologram watch and showed them what he’d discovered. They were in the living room, then, on the night of their arrival. “I found the profiles of all the children that were taken for experimentation. It goes way back to the first years of the regime. And it’s got _all_ their information. Race, gender, blood type, place of birth--and, the names of their direct family.”

This information struck Kyungsoo as an odd thing to fixate on the moment he heard it, so he looked at Baekhyun with furrowed eyebrows until he continued.

“And, Chanyeol. It says here your parents are _alive_. They live in the Goldenrod system, on a planet called Andong.”

This, almost simultaneously, sent both their eyes agape.

Kyungsoo then realized that this was monumental. Regarding Chanyeol’s friends, Baekhyun told them that they were flown out of Guro before the rebels could lay a hand on any of them. “I promise I’ll work on tracking them down,” Baekhyun said. “But this other thing is big news too, wouldn’t you say so?”

It was. And it kept Kyungsoo's mind reeling until he fell asleep late into the night. Chanyeol, however, was not able to sleep, working instead on Toben the robot dog with spare parts from Baekhyun and Jongdae's storage.

“I don’t know if I’d wanna see them, you know,” Chanyeol says. “I have you, don’t I?”

“You have to think this over. Don’t rush it.”

Chanyeol shakes his head. “What would I even say to them? Nothing, Kyungsoo. They sold me when I was baby. It said so on the file. I don’t know how I could ever face them.”

“Well...okay then.” Kyungsoo nods. He knows if it were him, he’d do the same. The whole concept of parentage has brought him nothing but pain, after all.

“It’s really up to you. But I’m here to give you support no matter what.”

“I know that very well,” Chanyeol says. He gets on his feet and offers Kyungsoo a hand.

Kyungsoo takes it and feels the warmth emanating from him. Leaves rustle above them and Toben barks, making Chanyeol smile softly. Kyungsoo thinks about what Baekhyun and Jongdae had been doing in the kitchen. He wonders if Chanyeol would mind if Kyungsoo kissed him a little and cradled his cheeks.

“Let’s go?” Chanyeol says.

The thought barely lasts a minute.

Back at the cottage, Baekhyun frowns upon their entrance and berates Kyungsoo for making them wait and getting the food cold in the process. Chanyeol gets off the hook, as Baekhyun opts to ruffle Chanyeol's hair as he sits at the dining table. Chanyeol winces, looking wary about Baekhyun's touch.

Jongdae quickly sets up the plates, heats up the soup, and prepares their bread and cheeses. They eat quietly together, though Kyungsoo knows by the sly looks on his friends' faces that they're doing something perverted with their legs, as they always do, every morning since they first got together. In truth, they barely see each other, as Jongdae is always busy running K.J.D. Spices, Inc., the planet's leading importer of spices. Meanwhile, Baekhyun often keeps himself holed up in his small laboratory, working on system maintenance for the Alliance. He is now one of their lead technicians, someone they kept far away from central operations for the sake of anonymity. This led him to a life of seclusion on a small planet, where much of the land was covered in woods and mountains.

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo had known each other since they were little boys at the orphanage. They’d been roommates all their life, even when they left the orphanage and moved into their own house. Jongdae, meanwhile, was someone they met when they were eighteen. His father had been Baekhyun’s superior at a startup software company that helped other businesses with their databases. When the two of them met, something instantly clicked, despite Baekhyun’s passion for technology and Jongdae’s aversion to the field, a product of parental pressure. The two, however, hadn’t always been in love. It was something about Baekhyun’s departure from Ilsan that led Jongdae to offer him love, a life, and companionship on an alien planet.

Kyungsoo, meanwhile, was left to his own defenses, seeking employment at Siwon Cargo, a company with strong financial backing from the Alliance. The five years he'd been at the job were lonesome in its majority: trips from planet to planet punctuated with companions who came and went, other cargo pilots sharing his pains, Baekhyun and Jongdae whenever they needed a ride or a holiday.

With his two friends perpetually in their own world, they fail to notice what occurs on the other side of the table. Kyungsoo is not exactly sure what brings this on but he lets himself relish in the feeling for just a bit.

Kyungsoo rests his hand on the table and almost immediately, Chanyeol takes it. They meet each other’s eyes and Chanyeol smiles. “You’re okay?” he says. One of his fingers brushes against Kyungsoo’s palm and it sends a shiver across Kyungsoo’s spine.

He looks away and lets Chanyeol hold his hand some more before he pulls away. They’ve done this before, but somehow, things feel different, especially after Kyungsoo let his imagination run wild just a while ago. He thought of himself kissing Chanyeol and touching the flush of his cheeks under the light of the sun. Reminded of this, he blushes and sips his tea, a little hot in his mouth. All around them, there are soft noises from the fridge, from birds outside, from the chime of the silverware.

Kyungsoo’s heart races and he wonders again if he and Chanyeol would ever reach a point where they’d be comfortable enough to kiss each other like Baekhyun and Jongdae do. It’s a thought, this time, that lasts for the rest of the morning and all throughout the afternoon.

Kyungsoo knows that there is a good chance that he might be very in love with Chanyeol. There is a good chance that he might have already known this for a while. There’s a chance that this feeling may be all for nothing, as Chanyeol’s companionship might soon come to an end, if he finds his friends or if he decides to live with his family. It’s a scary thought, but it’s one that keeps Kyungsoo at bay, preventing him from doing something he might regret.

 

★★★★★

Like all their holidays, this one must also come to an end.

“You’ll be okay out there?” Jongdae says.

Baekhyun holds his cheeks. The sound of the ship’s engine almost drowns out their voices, but Kyungsoo can still hear them very well.

“Yes, Jongdae. I will. Don’t worry about me.”

“I’ll come get you there in a week?”

“Yeah, seven days.” He kisses Jongdae’s lips. “Till then, I’ll keep you posted, okay?”

Baekhyun comes with them on their voyage out of Jinhae. He'd asked for a favor to be taken to Sangju, a planet of flatlands in the Rubicund system. Baekhyun will be visiting each of the planet's ministries, all located in the capital, to help install new database systems. Kyungsoo is vaguely aware that those might be set up for better surveillance of Alliance territories. This is especially true for Rubicund, where tensions have been high since the takeover of Guro. Kyungsoo is almost certain of Baekhyun's intentions but he lets the thought pass because Baekhyun also volunteers to use this as an opportunity to gather information from the ministries. In the capital, they are known to keep records of all Alliance activities, ones that may not even be in the computer system.

Chanyeol, however, barely hesitates to express his disapproval of Baekhyun’s work as they make their way towards the planet, the stars slowly changing into rubicund, rusty shades.

“Don’t you ever feel guilty?” Chanyeol says, his arms crossed as he stands.

Baekhyun shakes his head and laughs, swiveling his seat to face Chanyeol. Kyungsoo, meanwhile, tries to focus on the controls.

“It’s a living,” he says. “I don’t condone any of the things they do. But I can’t just suddenly take a moral high ground and give up everything I’ve worked for.”

“Have you ever even thought of the people you’re affecting?”

“Trust me. I do. Every single day of my life.”

“Then why do you still do this?”

“Look, I don’t need you harping on me, okay? I’m busting my ass here to help you, you know. Pulling out all the stops just to find out where your friends might be. I’ve even asked the Defence Ministry on Sangju to look into the matter. Didn’t give them context. Just asked them to do it. Because, guess what, I _can_ and I _will_. Just to help _you_ , who I barely even know.”

“That’s fucking bullshit.”

Kyungsoo turns to see Chanyeol’s hands turning bright red.

“Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo says. “Calm down.”

Baekhyun chuckles. “God, this was a mistake, wasn’t it? It’s not the Alliance that’s gonna kill me. It’s _this_ guy.”

His words are sharp. Chanyeol glares at him the whole time.

“I don’t need this.” Baekhyun stands and he walks out of the cockpit, “I’ll be in my bunk if you need me.”

Kyungsoo huffs and pushes a button to let the ship drift on its own. He gets on his feet and walks over to Chanyeol, who proceeds to lean against one of the switchboards, his arms still crossed and his face in a long frown.

“You’re okay.” Kyungsoo puts his hands on Chanyeol’s forearms and gives him a light squeeze. “I understand why you’re angry but this is not the time for us to start fighting.”

“But he’s just letting them control him, Soo. By _choice_.”

“Chanyeol. We’ve all got our pains with the Alliance. Plus, you do know they paid for this ship, right?. And they also make sure I get a decent wage. Does that make _me_ a horrible person?”

“No. But it’s different.”

“Alright.” Kyungsoo rubs his arms. “Think what you want. But, please, I want you to get along with Baekhyun. He’s special to me and so are you. So I can’t have you two fighting. And besides, he’ll be out of our hair in four, five days tops.”

This keeps Chanyeol quiet.

“Now could you watch the controls for a while? I’m going to check on Baek.”

Chanyeol scoffs but agrees to it anyway. Kyungsoo gives his shoulders a soft squeeze to calm him down before he leaves the cockpit and walks towards Baekhyun’s bunk. There, Kyungsoo finds him sitting on a bed with his holowatch lighting up. Baekhyun appears to be plotting out points on a map of the capital. Even when he sees Kyungsoo, he continues to do so.

“Your boyfriend’s going to drive me crazy,” Baekhyun says.

“He’s not--Baekhyun, you have to understand what he’s been through. You can’t even imagine what it was like.”

“Oh, I saw the files, so I know exactly what he went through.” This time, he turns off the watch. “This is why I’m risking my life to help you guys. I’m trying my best here. Keeping up appearances, making it seem like I enjoy this nightmare of a job, and it’s all to keep you, Jongdae, everyone I’ve ever known and loved-- _safe_. I don’t know why that’s so difficult for your boyfriend to wrap his head around. I thought he was supposed to be super smart or something.”

Kyungsoo sits beside him. He heaves out a sigh and touches Baekhyun’s hair, sliding fingers from his forehead and back, the way Baekhyun always liked it from back when they were kids. “He can be a handful,” Kyungsoo says. “But he always means well. Like, all the time. And I’ve told him to lay off on you, so you don’t have to worry about that anymore. Just--I want both you guys to give each other some slack. I’m sure he’ll warm up to you. He always does. That’s just the way Chanyeol rolls.”

Baekhyun huffs. “Fine,” he says, before crashing his head on Kyungsoo’s shoulder. “Geez, Kyungsoo, we’ve known each other for, what, 24 years? But someone’s already got me beat.”

“What do you mean?”

There’s a pause. “Have you told him how you felt yet? Because it doesn’t seem like either of you have.”

“I don’t see him that way, Baek.”

“Big fat lie.”

_I know_. Kyungsoo sighs.

“There’s no way to convince me otherwise,” Baekhyun says, smiling.

In truth, it’s a comfort that at least one person has caught on about how Kyungsoo feels. One less burden on his back.

Kyungsoo shakes his head. “Alright then…”

As they soldier on, Baekhyun and Chanyeol find a compromise of sorts as they stay out of each other’s space. It pains Kyungsoo to see two people he loves so much at odds but both Kyungsoo and Baekhyun agree that this is for the best.

The day before they land, Baekhyun attempts to coax Kyungsoo once again into confessing what he feels. Kyungsoo heeds this, nodding and saying, “Soon, I promise. I swear it.”

It lingers in Kyungsoo’s mind when he leaves Baekhyun at the cockpit that night and goes to the small space in the ship that serves both as Chanyeol’s bedroom and worklab. Blueprints and drawings of machinery are taped to the walls in overlaying patterns. Some are scattered on the floor and even along the cot laid out for Chanyeol to sleep in. Chanyeol stands among it all, scrutinizing a specific drawing on the wall. Toben is settled near his feet and Kyungsoo would’ve assumed that the dog had been sleeping if not for the fact that he’s a machine.

“Chanyeol?”

“Yes?” He doesn’t even look at him.

“What are you up to?”

“Nothing,” he says, matter-of-fact. “Just thinking about, well, what I should burn first among all of these.”

“Burn? What? What are you talking about?”

"Have to start over." He rips one paper off the wall and in an instant, he lights up a flame and turns the paper to ash, slowly falling off of his hand. He does it again, this time reaching for one of the first drawings he'd shown Kyungsoo. It was nothing special, just a high-speed vacuum that he thought of when he saw the state of Kyungsoo's ship. He never finished it for the lack of parts. Kyungsoo always thought he'd get to it someday but Chanyeol seems to forego this idea as he burns this drawing and more, ripping everything off of his wall in swift, abrupt motions.

“Chanyeol, stop, please. What’s wrong?” He takes one of Chanyeol’s arms with both his hands and holds him firmly.

“I need to think bigger. I’ve waited too long.”

“What do you mean?”

“I need something--to burn them. All of them.”

“ _Who_?”

“You _know_ who.”

Chanyeol loosens from his grip and continues ripping up papers and burning them, his breaths ragged, black powder spreading across his floor. Toben runs out of the room, its sensors perceiving impending danger. The smell of smoke starts making Kyungsoo feel sick. But Kyungsoo doesn’t let this deter him. He persists and he takes Chanyeol’s face in his hands, feeling the tears streak down his own cheeks.

“Chanyeol--C’mon, Chanyeol. Hey, come back to me.” This comes out in a choked breath, Kyungsoo unable to veil the emotions creeping out of his throat.

Chanyeol looks at him with wide eyes and he trembles relentlessly.

“I--I can’t--I can’t--Kyungsoo, I--”

Kyungoso kisses him then, severe, their teeth clashing together in the process. At first, Chanyeol shivers through it, unable to reciprocate. But then, when Kyungsoo pulls away, Chanyeol takes him back and holds Kyungsoo's neck. His hands are torrid on Kyungsoo's skin. They kiss in the way that an empire falls: ablaze, chaotic, without a chance of a return to their old ways.

He digs his nails into Chanyeol's back and pushes them closer together. It starts to feel painful having to tilt up to reach Chanyeol's lips but the pain, by some odd correlation, feels like deliverance from everything they've bottled up for almost a year.

“This is okay?” Chanyeol says. “Oh my god, is this okay? _Kyungsoo_.”

Kyungsoo plants a quick kiss on Chanyeol’s lips. “Yes,” he says, holding Chanyeol’s waist. “I’ve waited too long.”

The pained expression on Chanyeol’s face doesn’t leave. But the lines of his mouth become less severe and he holds Kyungsoo’s hand by the fingers, Chanyeol’s hand more warm now than it is hot. Then Chanyeol kisses him again, soft and lingering, the pain being slowly forgotten.

Chanyeol talks, again, of burning, of how he feels it in his bones.

“Then just hand it to me.” Kyungsoo embraces him and tells him the first words he thinks of -- thinly veiled attempts to tell Chanyeol just how much Kyungsoo needs him.

“Heat me up instead. Burn me, for all I care. And just stay by my side.”

Their eyes meet, dark and full of words withheld. It’s when Kyungsoo leans in that Chanyeol pushes him against a wall and kisses him silly, the heat between them evident in the flush of their bodies. Slowly, Chanyeol carries him up, Kyungsoo’s legs dangling from Chanyeol’s hips. Kyungsoo feels like crying and he does, while Chanyeol kisses him through it.

In the end, Kyungsoo is left a blubbering mess of moans and whimpers, his body convulsing as Chanyeol’s body hovers on top of his, hands hot on Kyungsoo’s waist. The ash has been pushed away and instead they cake Chanyeol’s blanket with their sweat and cum. Their cocks rub together and Kyungsoo moans through Chanyeol’s release, splattering Kyungsoo’s stomach with white fluid. Their eyes meet and Kyungsoo smiles at him, settling a hand on Chanyeol’s sweaty back.

Kyungsoo thinks of doing more, much more, of taking all of Chanyeol’s heat inside of him in all the ways he can think of. It’s a shit analogy for the kind of sex he wants; he knows that for a fact. But he uses it anyway and kisses Chanyeol through the whole process, feeling the intensity of Chanyeol’s emotions creeping up on his skin, a slow burn, something he’d always imagined, from the day he first realized that he was, in fact, in love with him.

 

★★★★★

Kyungsoo takes a deep, shallow breath in the middle of a kiss.

For two days, he's made to see red again and again. Baekhyun is away, off doing his job. He will provide them any information he might gather in a few hours' time. Tomorrow, they will leave, perhaps for a job or to start seeking out Chanyeol's friends. But for the moment, Kyungsoo remains in his ship and passes the time by sliding his mouth onto Chanyeol's cock and listening to Chanyeol breathing haggardly. Chanyeol lays clothed on Kyungsoo's bed but with all his buttons open to reveal his chest and stomach, sturdy and wet under Kyungsoo's fingers. On the floor are the discards of Kyungsoo's clothing, along with a couple of inventions that Chanyeol suddenly had a burst of inspiration to finish: a circular device for invisibility, the high-speed vacuum he'd set out to make quite some time ago.

It is only a matter of time until Kyungsoo pulls down Chanyeol's pants and starts to prepare himself with Chanyeol's help so the fucking can go smoothly. They had actually bought condoms and lube yesterday at a local shop, their faces flushed as Kyungsoo paid in credit and gave his thanks in the language of the city. They bought other things, after that, mostly blankets made of the softest fabrics Kyungsoo has ever encountered. Kyungsoo also purchased stuffed animals at Chanyeol's request: a bear and a lion, animals both of them have never actually seen but apparently are native to this region. All the while, they laughed together and Chanyeol even tested out his invisibility device on Kyungsoo's body, if only to check if Chanyeol could still touch him despite the lack of a body. They attached a patch to Kyungsoo's leg and Chanyeol pressed the button on the device. When they tried to touch each other, it didn't work and seeing each other proved much better than the opposite.

Kyungsoo gets a little breathless as he starts to lower himself, feeling the tip of Chanyeol’s cock slowly protruding his ass. Chanyeol’s chest expands and he keeps his eyes locked with Kyungsoo’s. They smirk at each other and Kyungsoo suddenly feels the need to lick Chanyeol’s face. But all in good time.

He’s almost embarrassed when he lets out a soft, high-pitched moan but he finds comfort in the way Chanyeol looks at him. As if he’s the most precious thing in the world.

“This is driving me crazy,” Kyungsoo says, arching his back as he rocks himself on Chanyeol’s cock.

“I’ll give you much more, if you want.”

“Yes, _please_ , give me all you’ve got.”

Chanyeol sits up and circles Kyungsoo’s legs around him so they can touch each other with more freedom. Kyungsoo submits to the control of Chanyeol’s hands, holding Kyungsoo’s hips to lift him on and off his cock. Kyungsoo’s hands feather lightly on Chanyeol’s back as Chanyeol lifts his weary body in a languid pace. When they kiss, it’s still like fire, but more like fire sending its heat from a distance, like the rays of the sun, gentle and mild on a fine spring day.

It’s a particularly hard thrust hitting his prostate that sets Kyungsoo off and makes him spill between their bodies. Chanyeol follows soon after, one hand on Kyungsoo’s back and the other giving his own cock a stroke while Kyungsoo lays his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder, fucked out and blissful and happy to be held.

“I’m really happy right now,” Kyungsoo says, wanting badly to ask if Chanyeol is as well, but even in the afterglow of sex, he loses the nerve.

Luckily, Chanyeol does him a favor and shares his sentiments. Chanyeol hugs him tight and plants his nose in Kyungsoo’s hair. Kyungsoo leaves his eyes open and listens as Chanyeol tells him, “I have a thousand things I want to say to you. Like, all the time, thoughts just flying in and out of my head, but there’s even more of them right now. I’m ticking time bomb, you know. I’ve been taken apart and pieced together in the most horrible ways. But none of that seems to matter, right--” He chokes up, Kyungsoo feeling a wetness above him. “None of that seems to matter when you’re around. Which is why I’m so glad we found each other.”

“You’re gonna make me cry.”

“Not before _I_ do.”

“Don’t, please.”

“Too late.” He sobs, hands tightening their grip on Kyungsoo’s back.

The thing about tears is that once they come, it takes a lot of will for them to leave. So Kyungsoo and Chanyeol remain in each other’s arms, clawing at each other’s backs as they cry out their feelings. Somehow, Kyungsoo begins feeling nervous as the minutes go by, a rising feeling slowly entering his heart. Nevertheless, he remains in Chanyeol’s arms knowing that he’d feel much worse if Chanyeol weren’t near him.

They untangle from each other when it gets too cold, late in the afternoon. Chanyeol pulls on his beige sweater, making him look softer than he already does beneath the fluorescent light. Kyungsoo wears his own red sweater and gets a couple of new blankets which Chanyeol proceeds to curl around along with his stuffed bear and lion.

“You’re so cute, you know,” Kyungsoo says, brushing his fingers against Chanyeol’s cheek.

“Oh, trust me, I know,” he says, prompting Kyungsoo to give him a shove.

Chanyeol sleeps but Kyungsoo doesn’t, not because he doesn’t want to curl up with Chanyeol and bask in this newfound comfort. Rather, his thoughts turn to Baekhyun and the danger he’s put himself in. Kyungsoo had tried to convince Baekhyun to let him help, even if it meant leaving Chanyeol alone in the ship. But Baekhyun wouldn’t have it, telling Kyungsoo that this is his responsibility and no one else’s. Kyungsoo now thinks that he should have been more assertive and not let his closest friend sacrifice himself for a favor.

He knows even the mere act of sending a message would be dangerous, as the Alliance and their close allies might intercept anything that goes through Baekhyun’s devices. All Kyungsoo can do is wait for the time of their meeting, which is late into the night at a local bar.

He wakes Chanyeol up when the time is near and they dress in thick jackets as protection from the cold. They walk together across the quiet port area, little lights in every ship lit up for the night. The stars above are red, which Kyungsoo thinks is a horrible color, as it reminds him of blood and doom. It takes them nearly twenty minutes to reach the bar, a large bricked establishment in a street full of closed shops. There are men and women outside smoking, giving Chanyeol and Kyungsoo menacing looks. On their necks, there are scales, typical of people from this planet.

The pungent odor of smoke mixed with cold beer wafts throughout the bar. It’s a busy day, the counter full of folks noisily chatting while chugging down their mugs. Baekhyun is nowhere in sight and Kyungsoo starts feeling afraid that he may not come at all, that he may have been captured, or worse: dead.

They remain on their feet and stay by a tall circular table, Kyungsoo ordering two local brews to pass their time. Kyungsoo downs a whole mug in a few minutes, Chanyeol looking surprised at his speed. Chanyeol barely drinks any, offering his own to Kyungsoo, who tenses up as the minutes go by.

By 11 o’clock, an hour after their official meeting time, Kyungsoo becomes convinced that Baekhyun isn’t coming.

“This is bad,” Kyungsoo says, drinking more of his beer. “This is really, really bad.”

Chanyeol doesn’t say anything, merely tightens his lips as he looks around the bar. His fingers seem restless as they tap on the table, so Kyungsoo knows he’s worried as well, despite everything he’s said about Baekhyun.

“Hey, you the guys looking for Mr. Byun?” Kyungsoo turns, hearing an unfamiliar voice. He’s confused, for a moment, but then he sees Chanyeol’s dark eyes fixed straight ahead. Behind Kyungsoo, there’s a tall bulky man in a thick brown jacket, dirtied and smelly, staring at them with his piercing green eyes. There are scales on his neck, telling them that he’s a local.

Kyungsoo furrows his eyebrows. “And who are you?”

The man takes a whiff off the cigarette in his hand. He smiles. “Not important.”

There’s a lingering pause as Kyungsoo and Chanyeol keep staring at him. The man drops his cigarette and steps on it. He licks his lips and eyes Chanyeol.

“You guys are coming with me.”

Chanyeol steps forward. “What makes you think we’re doing anything of the sort?”

“Look, kid, I’m here to take you to Mr. Byun. He paid me to do this. Said it was safer or something. So do you want to see your friend or not?”

Kyungsoo holds Chanyeol’s arm and squeezes him tight. They meet each other’s gaze. “Chanyeol, let’s just go with him. We don’t really have any other choice.”

“But--”

“Chanyeol. We have to be rational.”

The man laughs. Kyungsoo glares at him before he tells the man to lead them out. The man waves his hand signaling for them to follow him as he walks toward the exit.

This leads them to trudge along the pavement, darkness making it hard to see where they’re being led. But Kyungsoo does realize that the people on the street lessen and lessen as they walk several blocks. He doesn’t ask. Instead, he observes the stranger very closely, seeing if anything suspicious would come up.

They are led to a dimly lit alley between two brick buildings. Kyungsoo looks around seeing no one else in sight. The man stops walking and turns to them, smoke surrounding his face.

“Where’s Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo says.

“Patience,” the man says.

As soon as he says that, one of many doors in the alley opens. From there comes Baekhyun, still wearing the clothes he’d left in: a blue coat and the standard blue pants for Alliance employees, both normal and clean enough not to cause alarm. But then, Kyungsoo sees that his face is pale and a scar has been etched below his chin.

Kyungsoo draws near him and Baekhyun all but runs and tackles Kyungsoo as he envelops him in an embrace.

“Close your eyes,” Baekhyun says.

“What?”

“Just do it, okay? It’s for your own good.”

“Okay?” Kyungsoo closes them. “But what’s wrong? Why do you have a scar? And who is this man?”

“You really shouldn’t have come here, Soo. I’m so sorry.”

“Baek, what do you mean? What happened?”

Chanyeol’s voice comes, loud and alert. “Kyungsoo!”

“Enough chit-chat.”

Kyungsoo pushes Baekhyun away. He suddenly hears the click of guns.

“Did you really think we wouldn’t catch you, Mr. Do Kyungsoo? Tsk. You’re just as dumb as your traitor friend, I see.”

Upon leaving Baekhyun’s hold, Kyungsoo sees that several doors in the alley have been opened and a group of armed men swarm out to circle them. Kyungsoo takes Baekhyun by the wrist, tight. And he looks at Chanyeol, whose eyes are completely stricken and wide.

Emerging among them is the woman who’d just spoken, her body clad in a pristine white uniform, which Kyungsoo knows is a symbol power within the Alliance. “You took very good care of our baby, Mr. Do Kyungsoo. For that, I am eternally grateful.”

The man with green eyes speaks: "Should've listened to little Chanyeol here." He then rolls up his sleeve, revealing some kind of device attached to his wrist. He presses a button and changes -- the scales on his neck disappearing, his clothes morphing into the same one as the woman's, his face now younger, more docile.

Chanyeol gasps. “K-- _Kibum_.”

“You did well,” the woman says.

“Pssh. It was a piece of cake, Soojung. Didn’t even have to do much. Mr. Do here was a very big help.”

Baekhyun cries, shaking his head, “Kyungsoo, _god_ , I’m so sorry.”

“I can’t believe they really _fell_ for this. My acting’s gotten very good, don’t you think?” Kibum says, approaching Chanyeol, examining him from head to toe. “Now, we get to reactivate that little microchip in your head to let you do all that we ask.”

The woman chuckles. “Well let’s not waste any more time, yes? Guards?”

Two armed men approach Kyungsoo and Baekhyun, taking them by the wrist. Kyungsoo struggles but they have a firm hold on him. “Chanyeol, _run_!” he exclaims.

As soon as he says this, a man holds down his head. “Shut up!”

“Chanyeol, honey, I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Soojung says.

“Boys, hold him down before he does anything stupid!”

“Run, Chanyeol! Fucking _run_!”

“But, Kyungsoo--I can--”

“Are you _crazy_? You’ll burn us all alive. Just _leave_ me here, goddammit.”

“You just won’t shut up, will you?”

“Ah!”

The aggressive voice of the guard is the very last thing Kyungsoo hears before he feels a gun smashing right into his skull, causing him to lose consciousness. He tries to yell one more time but it all happens too fast.

The very last thing Kyungsoo smells is smoke. Which he knows comes from Chanyeol’s hands. He thinks Chanyeol might have screamed something, but Kyungsoo could not be sure, because he blacks out and falls to the ground.

Quite possibly, Chanyeol didn’t run and everything they’ve ever worked for may have gone to waste. But in Kyungsoo’s head, in his dream, he envisions Chanyeol’s escape, leaving the planet and having a happy life away from Kyungsoo, someone who brought Chanyeol nothing but danger.

When he wakes up, Kyungsoo almost cries as he sees the menacing faces of Soojung and Kibum staring down at him. He is strapped to a bed in a room lit in blinding white. Their gloved hands are sticky and cold. They leer at him behind surgical masks and Kyungsoo screams, unable to hold back the tears as they hold down his body and laugh at his pain. But nothing Kyungsoo did could stop them and the searing terror they cause across his body and throughout the whole universe.

 

★★★★★

He’s put away in a cell that is all white except for the glass door and the small silver boundary that conceals the toilet and sink. He does not know exactly how long he’s been here. But he thinks it could not have been more than two weeks. Baekhyun, he knows, is in the cell next to him. At nights, he swears he can hear Baekhyun cry, if only faintly, through the wall that separates them.

They’ve torn him up and replaced the arm Chanyeol gave him, Kibum telling him that it will be used for examination, as it seems to have Chanyeol’s DNA within it.

“Curious,” Soojung had said, as Kyungsoo struggled on a folding bed in a room that smelled like acid. “That Chanyeol could make something so life-like. He’s never made such a thing before.”

Kyungsoo is left with an arm made of metal, one that they said they’ve offered him out of the kindness of their hearts. Of course, Kyungsoo knows that they just gave it to him so they could test a new invention and at the same time, so they could convince him to cooperate. Chanyeol, it seems, was able to escape and Kyungsoo sensed that they were hatching a plan on how to lure him on their ship.

Even though he still wants to live, Kyungsoo hopes Chanyeol will not do anything reckless. He hopes Chanyeol will just leave him here and live a full life without him. It’s a difficult thought but Kyungsoo would much rather spend the rest of his days in a prison cell while knowing that Chanyeol has escaped a life of misery, a repeat of what he’s been made to experience throughout his whole life.

At the same time, Kyungsoo can’t help but feel a tiny shred of hope, because he knows what Chanyeol is like. While he doesn’t trust Chanyeol not to be reckless, he trusts that Chanyeol loves him and he trusts that Chanyeol will not back down without a fight.

His conflicting thoughts occupy him in his days as a captive. He finds nothing else to do but think and eat the three pieces of bed and drink the water they’re provided on a daily basis. They do not touch him further than they already have, at least for now. He hopes the same is true for Baekhyun.

One night, as Kyungsoo prepares to sleep, a guard comes to his cell and pulls him up.

“You’re being summoned,” the guard says, behind his blue helmet.

Kyungsoo glares at him but does not hesitate to follow. As the guard guides him out of the cell, Kyungsoo finds Baekhyun, clad in the same white clothes as Kyungsoo. When they see each other, both their eyes widen and they embrace each other.

“What did they do to you?” Baekhyun says, frantic in Kyungsoo’s ear.

“Nothing I haven’t had to handle before. But what about you? Are you okay?”

“They’ve barely touched me,” Baekhyun says. “But…”

Before Baekhyun can finish, they are forced to part and the guards push them to move forward. Kyungsoo looks at Baekhyun’s arms and sees the remnants of multiple bruises. Baekhyun shakes his head and says, “It’s nothing. Nothing compared to you, at least.”

As they walk the halls of the prison, Kyungsoo sees nothing but empty cells. When Kyungsoo had been at the lab, right after they’d replaced his arm, he overheard Soojung and Kibum talking about the other experiments and how they were no longer in their hands. They talked about this in a rare foreign tongue, one Kyungsoo understood very well. Apparently, they underestimated what Kyungsoo could understand. But where Chanyeol’s friends might have gone or if they’re even alive, Kyungsoo was not able to gather.

Kyungsoo would like to think they are merely flying somewhere in space, on their own ship, just like Chanyeol did when he snuck into Kyungsoo’s life.

The guards bring them before a pair of large automatic doors, which open with a swipe of a card. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are not informed about the reasons for their summoning, but Kyungsoo already feels that he’ll be seeing Soojung and Kibum’s menacing faces very soon.

Behind the doors, Kyungsoo finds himself in a large blue-lit control room, the cockpit of this ship. At the center, Soojung and Kibum stand among lines of operators, faces blank as they stare at their screens. Before all of them is a larger screen. On this and on all the smaller ones in front of each employee, Kyungsoo doesn’t expect to see what he does. His mouth falls open and his heart starts beating fast.

The first thing Kyungsoo notices are his eyes, still as warm as ever despite the serious expression plastered on his face.

“Kyungsoo!” comes his voice, as Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are led down to the center of the room. They are made to stand between the two Alliance scientists.

“Here they are, just like you asked,” Kibum says, his voice loaded with frustration. “Now tell us what your terms are.”

Chanyeol’s eyes widen, “His _arm_.”

“I suggest you get on with it,” Soojung says. “Or else your friend here will lose more than just that arm you so graciously made him.”

Chanyeol glares at them, at everyone in the room. He appears to be on an unfamiliar ship. Kyungsoo wonders if the Alliance took Exodus or if someone on Sangju has already looted its contents as it lay there unattended.

“Don’t make deals with them Chanyeol! They’re lying to you!” Baekhyun screams this and Kibum takes one of his wrists, pressing hard.

“Silence,” he orders.

"Baekhyun, Kyungsoo...It's okay," Chanyeol starts. "I offer myself. In exchange for their safety, I will surrender myself to you and I promise to offer all my powers in service of the Alliance."

Soojung raises an eyebrow. “That’s all? You’re giving in just like that?”

“I have nothing else. And I’m sure your lords are powerful enough to find me sooner or later. But, I would like to make this easier for all of us. I want this to end on my terms.”

“Chanyeol!” Baekhyun shouts. “That’s _crazy_!”

Kibum pulls him then, making Baekhyun’s frail body fall to the ground. “I told you to stay _silent_.”

Kyungsoo rushes toward him, holding Baekhyun’s arm and rubbing a hand on his back. Throughout this all, he doesn’t say anything as he goes back to stare at Chanyeol’s face and examine his whereabouts.

“Very well then,” Soojung says, laughing. “That is all we ever wanted.”

“Glad that you’ve come to your senses,” Kibum says, wiping his hands on a handkerchief.

This is when Kyungsoo notices the initials _K.J.D._ on the far right of the screen, where a box is laid out on the floor, its inscription barely readable from afar. Still, Kyungsoo is able to notice and he starts to wonder if Chanyeol’s terms are all there is to it.

“Tomorrow,” Chanyeol says. “I will meet you all in Jinhae. I will send you the coordinates once I’ve settled on a place.”

Kyungsoo meets Chanyeol’s gaze. They stare at each other, their faces blank. Kyungsoo nods at him.

_I trust you._

His thoughts on this are no longer conflicting.

“Jinhae,” Soojung says. “Where the traitor lives?” She chuckles.

“That is where I am,” Chanyeol nods. “And I promise you--I am not stupid enough to endanger my friends any further.”

_But you are._

“Fine then,” Soojung says. “But if you’re lying, just remember we still have all your friends with us here. Minseok, Yerim, _all of them_. And I'm sure you wouldn't want to see them buried in the ground, would you?"

Kyungsoo looks at Baekhyun, whose face hardens at the mention of those names. They share a look and Kyungsoo knows that they are thinking the same thing.

“I am telling you nothing but the truth,” Chanyeol says and Kyungsoo meets his eyes again, before Chanyeol continues, “I would offer my life if it means my friends are safe. I would offer more, actually. Everything I have.”

Kibum cackles. “You were always the sappy one, Chanyeol. And the smartest one too.”

In the end, it is left at that, Chanyeol’s face disappearing as Kibum lets the screen fade.

“Take them back to their cells,” Soojung says.

Kyungsoo holds Baekhyun as they walk through the halls once again. It somehow feels emptier than the all the other times he’s had to be here. Baekhyun, as they walk, appears to be deep in thought.

“I wonder…” Baekhyun starts, but he’s cut off when the guard shoves his back and tells him to shut it.

The night passes slowly and Kyungsoo barely gets any sleep. It is difficult to tell when morning has actually come. He only becomes aware when all the lights in the halls come to life. Across his cell, Kyungsoo sees another inmate, someone he'd never noticed before. Upon seeing what he can do, Kyungsoo realizes just why he's never noticed: One minute there's no one in the cell, then the next, there appears a child who looks no older than twelve. Kyungsoo puts his hand on the screen door and the child does the same.

There is really no other option now. Chanyeol has to save them.

In an hour’s time, Kyungsoo is brought his breakfast. He eats simultaneously with the child, who seems to be the only one left among all the human experiments. It pains Kyungsoo to leave him behind but when the time comes, he feels that there is no room for hesitation and he lets himself be escorted out of the prison with Baekhyun at his side.

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo are cuffed as they stand before Kibum and Soojung in the lower deck. Kibum snickers at them while Soojung stares blankly.

“Let’s get this over with, shall we?” Soojung says.

“Yes, let’s,” Kyungsoo says, nodding his head.

“Cocky now, are you?” Kibum says.

Baekhyun, beside him, stays quiet and morose as Kibum and Soojung march ahead. A guard pushes him and Kyungsoo looks at this guard in the meanest way possible, his metal hand clenching into a fist.

“Don’t bother,” Baekhyun says. “I’m sure we’re gonna die here, Soo. They tell us we’re safe but as soon as they get their hands on Chanyeol, they’ll slit our throats. I know how this works. I’ve seen it with my own eyes.”

Kyungsoo wants to tell him that they should both have hope. But he doesn’t want to be discovered, foiling any plans Chanyeol might have. Given this, Kyungsoo tries to give Baekhyun some comfort in a different way.

“Hey,” Kyungsoo says. “Let’s face this with our heads held high, yeah?”

Baekhyun sighs, then smiles slightly. “Yeah,” he nods, before lifting his head. “Better to die with dignity.”

The exit ramp is opened, mist spreading throughout the deck. Baekhyun and Kyungsoo march forward, cuffed but assured they've done right by this world.

“And Soo?” Baekhyun says.

“Yeah?”

"I never got to tell you that I know what happened to Chanyeol's friends. They escaped, just like Chanyeol did. All of them, on one ship."

“Oh, god. That’s _amazing_.”

“It really is,” Baekhyun says. “I just hope Chanyeol knows about it. I mean, I told Jongdae. I sent him all the details when I knew the Alliance was catching on to what I was doing. But god knows if it ever reached Chanyeol.”

“If it did--”

“If it did, then he’s just doing this for our sake and our sake only. Which makes me feel much worse.”

Kyungsoo looks ahead. Again, he itches to tell Baekhyun not to worry but something tells him he has to keep this as clandestine as possible.

Kyungsoo hears Soojung speak. “That boy is just standing there, all alone, looking like an idiot about to die.”

“Oh but he’s not going to die anytime soon, is he?” Kibum says.

"Well if it were up to me, I'd make him our pet until the end of days. Wouldn't you agree, Kibum?"

“Definitely,” Kibum says. “But don’t start getting me all giddy now, sister.”

“These goddamn scientists,” Baekhyun grumbles. “Think they’ve got all the power in the fucking universe. They’re the worst of us all.”

Kyungsoo is just as enraged but he holds back his tongue. Instead, he anticipates seeing Chanyeol again amidst the large open field where they’ve chosen to meet, mountains in the far east, sloping up to the sky. It smells of fresh grass outside and it feels like rain is imminent as the clouds grow dark.

As they walk a short way through the grassland, the mist starts to give way to Chanyeol’s figure. His brown hair flies with the wind. His eyes burn into Kyungsoo even from afar.

Kyungsoo lets out a gasp. A smile begins to form on his lips and their most treasured memories sweep through his head, from the time he first woke to see Chanyeol’s frightened expression, to the few times they shared together in bed, exploring every corner of each other’s bodies. It’s at this moment that Kyungsoo thinks he’s felt the most in love: as Chanyeol offers everything he has for the sake of more than just Kyungsoo. He has come a very long way, Kyungsoo thinks, and Kyungsoo can’t help feeling that he, a lowly cargo pilot, is somehow responsible.

Kibum and Soojung stand face to face with him.

“Don’t even think of lighting up your hands,” Kibum says. “You know full well that Soojung and I are immune to it. Remember that experiment for protective skin? What a time, right? You were screaming for a whole day.”

Chanyeol chuckles. “ _You_ guys might be immune but your _guards_ aren’t.”

“That is true,” Soojung says. “But just like you said, you wouldn’t want to make this difficult, right?”

Chanyeol nods. “Indeed,” he says.

Kibum waves his hand, beckoning the guards to bring Kyungsoo and Baekhyun forward. The serious look on Chanyeol’s face remains. Kyungsoo looks at him, expecting something to happen, suddenly afraid that he jumped to conclusions when he saw _K.J.D._

But they are in Jinhae and this is Jongdae and Baekhyun’s territory. So something tells Kyungsoo that any minute now, a certain someone will come flying down in a ship to take them all away.

A guard unlatches their handcuffs, giving Kyungsoo and Baekhyun relief. Kibum directs them to move forward and they do, approaching Chanyeol.

Kyungsoo rushes to hug him, tight to make it count, as if it’s the last time either of them will get to touch each other. He puts his mouth near Chanyeol’s ear and whispers to him, “I love you so much.”

“I know. And I love you too. Sorry I didn’t come sooner.”

“Are you kidding me?” Kyungsoo heaves. “Seeing you look this way was worth the wait.”

Chanyeol laughs and this tells Kyungsoo that everything will be okay.

"We're waiting, Mr. Chanyeol," Soojung says. "Surrender yourself. Unless of course, you want us to shoot these two dead right here, right now?"

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun says. “I hate to be the one to say this, but you have to make a decision. But just know that I don’t want you to do this. I’d rather get killed than hand you over to them. I swear it.”

Chanyeol nods in Baekhyun’s direction as he hugs Kyungsoo tighter. Then, he lowers his head and takes something from his pocket, which he slips into Kyungsoo’s hand.

“Press the button when they cuff me,” Chanyeol whispers. “And make sure to take the gun.”

Kyungsoo pulls away and stares at Chanyeol’s face. As they take Chanyeol away, Kyungsoo looks down at the circular contraption that Chanyeol slipped into his hand: the invisibility device he made before they landed on Sangju.

Kyungsoo stares at it for a moment before he turns to Baekhyun, who looks just as flabbergasted at what he is seeing.

They look toward Chanyeol and the soldiers marching away onto the ship.

“Is this...” Baekhyun starts, disbelieving.

“I think it is.”

“Then shouldn’t you press it now?”

“Yeah...” He nods, prepared. “I think I should.”

When he presses it, the device feeling hot in his hands, Kyungsoo swallows. What comes next is a strong gust of wind, coming from something that materializes in the sky. Baekhyun and Kyungsoo stare as it appears, little by little. The guards, along with Kibum and Soojung, gape at what appears to be a gargantuan ship shaped in the likeness of a whale.

“Oh my god,” Baekhyun says, as a hatch below the ship begins to open.

“This is a rebel ship, isn’t it?” Kyungsoo says, wide-eyed and dizzy.

“Yeah, but... _Look_ , Kyungsoo.” Baekhyun lifts his hand and points up. A smile starts to form on his face.

"It's..." A fleet of brown-clad figures in speeder ships starts to descend from the sky. Ahead of them, rushing towards Kyungsoo and Baekhyun, is just the person Kyungsoo expected to see.

Jongdae’s name comes out of Baekhyun’s mouth softly, in sheer disbelief. When they hear Jongdae’s call, both of them smile, while the small army of Alliance guards stare in disbelief, appearing to sense their imminent defeat.

“Yo!” Jongdae says, his speeder now hovering right in front of them. He smiles, cat-like and sly. “So are you two going to hop on or what?”

“Jongdae, you dirty fucking bastard, what the _fuck_.”

Baekhyun drags Kyungsoo by the arm and both of them ride the back of the speeder ship. Almost immediately, even as the ship dashes up into the air, Baekhyun takes Jongdae’s face to kiss him silly. All the while, Kyungsoo grabs the laser gun that appears to be ready for him. With this in his hand, the first thing Kyungsoo aims for are the engines of the Alliance ship, hoping to render them without a chance of escape.

Below them, Chanyeol is nowhere in sight. Kyungsoo hadn't been able to see where he might've gone but his first guess is that Chanyeol had slipped into the ship, hopefully there to save the one remaining prisoner: the child who'd been left to his own defenses.

A few men fall with their speeders as Alliance guards shoot them with their own formidable ammo. This is, however, not enough to deter the whole fleet of men and women, who all seem to be laughing and screaming in glee as they rush down to join the fight.

Kibum and Soojung are captured by two rebels and by the end of the scuffle, they are made to stand in the middle of the battlefield while their soldiers and the ship’s operators are made to lie on their stomachs, cuffed by the rebel soldiers. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun had shot a few of them down and while it made Kyungsoo a little bit sick, he knew there was no turning back, not with their current circumstances.

Still, Chanyeol is nowhere in sight and Kyungsoo tells Jongdae to bring them into the Alliance ship, which he does, flying them into the lower deck where the rebel soldiers have also come to take their money’s worth of machinery.

"Where do you three think you're going?" one of the rebel soldiers says, as Kyungsoo, Jongdae, and Baekhyun walk across the lower deck. It's a woman with a furry coat of skin and cat-like facial features. Jongdae eyes her threateningly.

“Get out of our way,” Jongdae says. “We still have some business to attend to.”

The woman scoffs. “Fine then.” She raises her arms. “Go on ahead.”

They enter the elevator of the lower deck to reach where they think Chanyeol might be. As they do so, Jongdae tells them about what happened while Kyungsoo and Baekhyun were captured: how Chanyeol and Jongdae contacted the rebel army to convince them to help.

“But they only agreed to do it,” Jongdae says, then hesitates, looking at Kyungsoo. “If Chanyeol agreed to be their weapon.”

Kyungsoo furrows his eyebrows. “That’s not gonna happen.”

Jongdae’s face tightens. “These guys are pretty aggressive, Soo. And violent. But I still haven’t fully made up my mind on what I should feel about all this. In the end, though, I trust Chanyeol to make the right decision.”

The elevator door opens.

“This is fucked up,” Baekhyun says.

Kyungsoo keeps silent. He diverts his attention to the hallway leading towards the prison cells, the lights dim and flickering. He thinks he might’ve damaged the power when he shot at the ship during the battle.

The doors to the prison and all the other rooms appear to have been dismantled and broken. Burned steel makes way for wires that hang from the ceiling. Small electric currents go through them in a mildly threatening manner. Kyungsoo knows only one person who might’ve been able to do this.

Scouring the prison cells leads them to nothing. Chanyeol appears to have left for somewhere else. The cell that once belonged to the child is also empty. Its door had been forced open, the glass blackened by fire.

"Where could he have gone?" Jongdae says as they reach a dead end.

Kyungsoo thinks and suggests multiple places for them to try: the laboratories, the empty cockpit, the infirmary, the employee bunks. They come up with nothing until they go to the very last floor of the ship, where the viewing deck sits.

Here, they finally find Chanyeol, who stands to stare at the expanse of land before him through the large glass window. With him is the child, holding Chanyeol's hand. Both of them are still and Kyungsoo sees droplets forming behind the glass as rain dribbles outside. The whale ship can be seen from a distance. Towards it, rebel soldiers march with their prisoners.

It’s the child that turns first upon hearing their footsteps. He seems surprised initially, but then, when he meets Kyungsoo’s eyes, he offers a smile.

“Chanyeol?” Kyungsoo says, careful as he nears Chanyeol and reaches out a hand.

When Kyungsoo touches his back, Chanyeol turns his head ever so slightly.

“Hi,” Kyungsoo says.

Chanyeol averts his gaze. “I couldn’t go down there,” he says. “I just...watched. I couldn’t do anything. This is not the type of life I want, Kyungsoo. I can’t do it. I promised them I would but I really can’t.”

Chanyeol lets go of the child’s hand and covers his face with his palms. Kyungsoo touches Chanyeol’s elbow, though Chanyeol seems to inch away, for but a moment, feeling the metal of Kyungsoo’s hand.

Sensing this, Kyungsoo replaces the hand with the one that’s still skin and bone, placing it on Chanyeol’s upper arm.

“You’re okay,” Kyungsoo says. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”

“But I do!” Chanyeol exclaims, frustrated. “Or they might _kill_ you, Kyungsoo. And all of this would be for _nothing_.”

Kyungsoo takes Chanyeol’s wrists. “Put these down,” he says. “I want to see your face.”

“But--”

“No but’s.”

They find each other’s eyes, Kyungsoo trying his best to assure him with just a look.

"We'll think of something," Kyungsoo says, before cradling Chanyeol's face. "Believe me when I say that."

This time, Chanyeol doesn’t inch away from Kyungsoo’s metal hand.

After moments of pause, it’s Baekhyun who breaks the silence.

“Well, guys, I actually have an idea,” he says.

Everyone turns to him, even the child, who looks befuddled by everything occurring.

“We’re listening,” Jongdae starts, crossing his arms and appearing amused by his husband’s declaration.

Baekhyun nods and smiles. “So this is a standard Alliance ship, right. And these ships, based on my knowledge, have fighter vessels attached--on each side, I think. One on West wing, another on the East. Then one at the rear.”

Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow.

"I think...Hear me out, okay? I think we can manage an escape if we find one of those things."

“Baekhyun, dear, that’s a nice thought and all,” Jongdae says. “But how would we even fly that out of here without us getting shot down?”

The moment Jongdae says this, Kyungsoo has an epiphany. It’s in the form of something he’d handed to Jongdae when they were flying on the speeder. Something Jongdae had slipped into his pocket.

“Invisibility,” Kyungsoo cuts in, eyes wide. “Jongdae, the invisibility device. You have it, right?”

“Oh, shit. Right!” He reaches into his pocket and brings out the circular device.

"Chanyeol." Kyungsoo faces him and takes both of his hands. Chanyeol looks utterly surprised by everything taking place but he doesn't look averted at the idea either.

“I assume you’d know how to connect this to a fighter vessel?” Kyungsoo continues. “And I assume the thing can still fly even when invisible?”

“That’s--” Chanyeol lets this out in a soft voice. “Yeah, that’s what I did with the--rebel ship...But--”

Kyungsoo puts a finger to Chanyeol’s mouth. “No but’s.”

“All we have to do is find a ship now, yeah?” Baekhyun says. “I’d suggest the one at the rear so there’s less chance they’ll notice something disappearing.”

"But where would we even go?" Jongdae says.

“Ah.” Chanyeol looks at the child. “Sehun, you know where everyone went right?”

“Sehun? The kid’s named Sehun?” Jongdae tilts his head, looking at the boy amusedly.

“Everyone else?” Baekhyun says. “Do you mean who I think you mean?”

Chanyeol nods at them. The rush of excitement in Kyungsoo’s body rises. Everything, it seems, will be moving like clockwork, as long as every detail falls into place.

“I...” The little boy starts, gulping. His voice is small, like he isn’t used to speaking up his mind. “Yes… At least, I think so? Minseok had a plan…”

Jongdae interjects, “Then why are you still here?”

“He was captured before he got to join them,” Chanyeol says. “There was nothing anyone could do while his microchip was still activated.”

“Oh, god, that’s awful!” Baekhyun says.

“But he’s here now,” Kyungsoo says. “And we have somewhere to go. We might not be sure but I think it’s our best shot. I mean, does everyone agree? Would this be something you’re all willing to do?”

"Count me in," Jongdae says, giving them two thumbs up. "Haven't got much to lose anyway, yeah? Can't go back to my business now, can I? The Alliance will see to it that I can't. And I'm guessing the rebel force won't be so keen on me either."

“I’m willing too,” Baekhyun says, giving Kyungsoo a determined gaze. “I’ve lived too much of my life subservient to others. But not anymore. Not now. Not ever.”

“And you, Chanyeol?”

He looks at Kyungsoo, then at each of their friends. His mouth parts, then closes, before he appears to gain the nerve.

“I’ll go wherever Kyungsoo goes.”

“Aw, fuck, that’s so sweet.” Jongdae smiles.

Kyungsoo laughs. "It's settled then," he says, before looking at each of them, nodding, determined, assured of the life they're about to bring upon themselves, effectively becoming fugitives not only with the Alliance but also with the rebel force.

This life, Kyungsoo thinks, is something he’ll accept with arms wide open, prepared and resolute.

 

★★★★★

It’s a long and arduous journey not without its fair share of trials.

With Baekhyun’s tech skills, they are able to hack into the universal bank and transfer all their funds to anonymous accounts from which they withdraw once they land in a city two planets away from Jinhae. This solves the problem of obtaining a better ship and gathering enough resources for their trip.

While the ship is not as large as Exodus, they each have their own individual rooms, even for Sehun, who likes to be on his own for the most part, disappearing at times when he feels everyone else is being too loud. Kyungsoo knows it is probably uncomfortable for him, being around people he barely knows, let alone two couples. The world at large is foreign to him, as it was for Chanyeol when he first escaped. So it’s Chanyeol who takes it upon himself to be something like a brother for Sehun as he adjusts to life away from captivity.

Even though they have their own rooms, Jongdae and Baekhyun often sleep in the same one. In fact, the day they bought their new ship at the second-hand market, Jongdae and Baekhyun waste no time as they lock themselves into their room, leaving Kyungsoo and Chanyeol to keep Sehun company as he got ready for bed. At this time, they have yet to fly the ship out of the planet, opting to hide it in a deep, woodsy area.

“I’m fine, you know,” Sehun tells them. “I’m not really scared--of being alone. Of anything, really.”

“You sure about that bud?” Chanyeol says, patting his head.

“Yes.” Sehun nods. Kyungsoo looks at him warily. Sehun rolls into his blanket and hides underneath it. “I’d much rather be alone, actually.”

Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a look. In the end, they decide to leave Sehun alone.

They walk the halls to their respective bunks. Somehow, it’s tense between them, something unspoken lingering in the air. It’s one of those things, again, where they’re overcome with anxiety over decisions they’ve made.

“So...” Chanyeol scratches the back of his head. “We’ll be flying out the ship tomorrow, yeah?”

Kyungsoo nods. “Yeah,” he says .”Then we’ll be on our way to Hallasan. That’s where your friends are supposed to be, right?”

Chanyeol nods. Hallasan is a predominantly snowy planet at the far edges of the Alliance’s territory, past Ultramarine, inside the last of the five star systems: Argentum. Much of the planets in this system are uninhabitable and Alliance surveillance in this territory has been famously weak, which Kyungsoo reckons is why Chanyeol’s friends assumed it to be a good place to hide.

After this short conversation, they part ways, each going to their own bedrooms. Kyungsoo finds it difficult, sleeping all alone, more so when he feels the strain on his shoulder caused by the metal arm. He still isn’t used to it and he can’t wait for Chanyeol to build him a new one.

It’s like this for a few days and while Kyungsoo sometimes wants to cry about it, he decides there are more pressing matters to worry about: navigation, for one; avoiding capture, for another. Chanyeol builds him another arm, presumably out of his own DNA yet again. Kyungsoo accepts it and finds it a source of comfort amidst the tension.

"Shouldn't you guys be, like, all over one another?" Jongdae says as they take joint control of the cockpit.

“It’s not as simple as that,” Kyungsoo says. “We have to sort things out first. Get our heads straight.”

Jongdae sighs. “This might sound trite, but it’s during times like these when you should just follow your heart, you know? You’ll feel much better if you do. Trust me. I’ve been there. ”

Kyungsoo knows he has, remembering how he took a leap of faith asking Baekhyun to marry him all those years ago. Kyungsoo also knows that he should follow his heart. More than anything though, he just wants to feel Chanyeol’s skin against his. It’s almost painful how much he wants it.

“I’ll talk to him if you want?” Jongdae says.

Kyungsoo shakes his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Mmhmm. Then I guess I’ll leave it to you then. But I swear, if this goes on for too long, I’m going to lock you both in a room together until you make out.”

“God, could you do that? Really? I’ll take you up on that offer.”

Jongdae cackles. “But seriously though,” he adds, at the last minute.

That very night, with Baekhyun taking his place at the cockpit, Kyungsoo finds himself moving toward Chanyeol’s room. Here, he finds Chanyeol working on yet another project. The sight is familiar: Chanyeol in work goggles, screwdriver in hand, and what appears to be a brand new robot dog in the process of creation.

"You making another Toben?" Kyungsoo says as he stands by the doorframe. Sadly, Toben had been left on Exodus, which is now probably in the hands of the rebel forces.

Chanyeol looks up, smiling. “Oh, hi. And, yeah. Toben 2.0. It can’t ever replace the old one, but I miss the little guy, you know.”

“Of course,” Kyungsoo says. He closes the door and approaches Chanyeol’s corner of the room. He sits on the floor a few inches away from him and continues to watch.

“I think I can finish this by tomorrow,” Chanyeol says, as he connects some wires in the robot dog’s interior.

“Looking forward to it,” Kyungsoo says.

Kyungsoo does what he thinks feels right. He draws himself closer to Chanyeol’s body and lays his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder. At this, Chanyeol appears to tense, stopping the work he’d been doing with the wires.

“You’re lying on my shoulder,” Chanyeol says.

“Oh, yeah, I am. Is that...bad?”

“No.” Chanyeol removes his goggles, revealing his orange eyes. He shakes his head. “It’s not bad at all.”

Chanyeol puts an arm around Kyungsoo’s waist and brings him closer.

“Missed this,” Kyungsoo says, knowing full well that he should be brave.

“Me too,” Chanyeol says, voice soft.

“Really wanna kiss you,” Kyungsoo says.

Chanyeol smiles, “Yeah, me too.”

His body slackens and Kyungsoo crawls across the small space between them. They share a long, drawn-out kiss and Kyungsoo brushes his fingers against Chanyeol’s hair, pushing Chanyeol’s curls behind his ears. Chanyeol’s fingers are soft and feathery on Kyungsoo’s cheek. As this goes on, Kyungsoo feels himself being weighed down, unable to balance himself, until he settles his ass on Chanyeol’s leg. He kisses him still, kisses Chanyeol in a way that strikes Kyungsoo to his core: instinctual, something that almost makes him cry.

Chanyeol wraps his arms around him, then he says, in a small voice, “I’m sorry.”

Kyungsoo keeps eyes downcast. One hand fiddles with the hem of Chanyeol’s shirt; the other holds Chanyeol’s arm. “For what?”

“For not finding you sooner. For being so scared to touch you again. For not saying that I love you enough. For a lot of things, I dunno.”

Kyungsoo lifts his eyes, though he’s unable to look directly into Chanyeol’s face for more than a second. He tries to make up for it with another kiss, soft and lingering on Chanyeol’s mouth.

“Just touch me now,” Kyungsoo says. “And let me touch you too. I think, maybe, that’d make everything okay.”

Chanyeol heaves and he touches Kyungsoo’s thigh, sending a chill through Kyungsoo’s body. Kyungsoo squirms, feeling the beginnings of a bulge forming in Chanyeol’s pants.

“Clean up first?” Kyungsoo says, holding Chanyeol’s shirt. Chanyeol’s eyes flutter shut, as Kyungsoo touches him a little bit more. “I’ll wait for you,” he adds, kissing Chanyeol one more time.

When Chanyeol returns, his shirt is off and Kyungsoo is already fully naked on Chanyeol’s bed. Kyungsoo lifts himself onto his shoulders and offers a small smile in Chanyeol’s way. Chanyeol doesn’t lie down, not yet. He sits and holds his knees.

“Hey…” Kyungsoo kneels on the bed and loops his arms around Chanyeol’s body. “Hey, it’s okay. You’re okay. We’re okay.”

“We’re okay,” Chanyeol repeats. He turns his head, then. Kyungsoo can smell the soap on his skin. It makes Kyungsoo want to kiss him and of course, he indulges himself, right before Chanyeol pins against the bed.

The way Chanyeol fucks him that night makes him feel more emotional than he ought to. As he fucks into Kyungsoo from behind, Chanyeol makes Kyungsoo suck on his fingers, Kyungsoo’s drool gathering in shameful quantities around his mouth. His back gets plastered against Chanyeol’s ribs and all the while, Chanyeol jabs into him with so much force and speed. Kyungsoo holds his own stomach, his breath unrelenting, shown by the rise and fall of his belly. Chanyeol then applies more lube, with the bottle they’d swiped from Baekhyun’s bedroom, before fucking into Kyungsoo again and taking Kyungsoo’s breath away.

He completely loses himself, his moans leaving him with continuous force. Chanyeol asks him if he’s okay, not only once, but many, many times. Kyungsoo has to wonder, though, if he actually means to check or if it’s only a courtesy, because Chanyeol’s thrusts only seem to grow stronger by the minute. Not that Kyungsoo is complaining. Rather, he encourages it by telling him to go harder, fuck into him deeper, and kiss him silly while he’s at it. Kyungsoo tilts his head so he can find Chanyeol’s lips. Their kiss is sloppy, making Kyungsoo’s cock ache with arousal.

Chanyeol spills inside him this time, Kyungsoo gasping as he does so. He’s brought to a finish not long after, with Chanyeol kissing him as he spills against his own hand. Kyungsoo is left leaking with Chanyeol’s cum and covered in his own. Somehow, this comforts him; it makes him feel like they’ve grown closer, like they’ve decided on something monumental once again.

The next day, he wakes up beside Chanyeol, the smell of their sex still lingering on the sheets. Seeing his peaceful face makes Kyungsoo want to wrap him up again in soft blankets and plushie toys. And it makes him want to kiss him and ride his cock. But of course, too much of a good thing is never advisable. They’d gone a couple more times last night, after all, both of them feeling like all their cum has run out by the end of it.

Today, Kyungsoo volunteers to monitor the cockpit from morning to night, telling everyone that he has enough energy to last him a lifetime, especially after last night. Baekhyun says he’s gross and Jongdae tells Baekhyun to shut up, because Sehun’s just entered the dining area.

Sehun stays with Kyungsoo in the cockpit during the day, saying he doesn’t have anything better to do. He spins around on a swivel chair and even though Kyungsoo tells him to stop, Sehun doesn’t listen.

Later, Chanyeol comes over and picks Sehun up in his arms. “Hey, bud,” he says, booping Sehun’s nose. “You wanna play with a robot dog?”

Sehun’s eyes go wide and he lets Chanyeol carry him into the other room, where Kyungsoo knows Sehun’s having the time of his life playing with Toben 2.0.

In a few hours time, they’ll be entering the Goldenrod system, which Kyungsoo thinks he should tell Chanyeol about. This is, after all, the system where his parents are supposed to live.

Kyungsoo brings this up with Baekhyun later when he comes into the cockpit.

“You know full well that I’m all for that. I was the one who gave you that little piece of info, don’t you remember?”

“Yeah, I know. It’s just--Yeah, anyway. I’ll ask Chanyeol, later, maybe,” Kyungsoo says. Baekhyun gets behind him and squeezes Kyungsoo’s shoulders. It feels good, helps dissipate his nerves.

When Chanyeol hears about this later, he rejects any suggestion to land on that planet.

“First of all,” he says. “We don’t have the time.”

Kyungsoo and Baekhyun look at him warily, both of them seated, Chanyeol standing before them with crossed arms.

“Second of all,” Chanyeol says and sighs. “I don’t need them, you know. I’m fine right where I am, thank you very much.”

This rejection isn’t full of vehemence or fire. Rather, Chanyeol delivers this as an established fact, nonchalant, without any severity in his voice.

“Alright then,” Baekhyun says, leaning back. “Kyungsoo?”

“Yeah, no use arguing with him.” He smiles at Chanyeol, meeting his eyes. “He’s fine right where he is.”

This sets in stone how their travels across Goldenrod will go: They will not stop, their fuel and resources enough to keep them going for at least a week. Ultimately, this leads them to Ultramarine in three days. In Ultramarine, a decidedly larger system than others, they have to stop after five days. As it happens, they decide to land in Ilsan, though not in the capital city where someone might recognize Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, and Jongdae. Instead, they drop by a small town far west, somewhere Kyungsoo and Baekhyun used to go to when they were little so they could watch the lantern festival, where locals would light up paper lanterns in the midst of the falling cherry blossoms.

The five of them -- Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, Jongdae, Chanyeol, and Sehun -- watch as this unfolds, as they seem to arrive a day before this event and they decide to stick around, just to witness it before embarking once again on their journey. Kyungsoo holds Chanyeol’s hand and they watch silently as the cherry blossoms fall and the whole town is lit up by lanterns. The townspeople wear clothes of bright red hues; they are merry folk, as people in the Ilsan countryside generally are.

Kyungsoo wonders if Chanyeol's friends will be just as amiable or if they'll accept the five of them with open arms. Chanyeol talks about them constantly: Minseok, who could breathe out ice; Yerim, who could shift into any shape she pleases; Heeyeon, who could float above the ground; and much more, names like Yixing, Sooyoung, Joohyun, and Jongin coming up time and again.

As they approach the planet, Kyungsoo grows more and more scared of the things that might come their way. He fears the Alliance might come for them, bent on taking back what they think is theirs. He fears that the rebel force might find them and condemn their abandonment of the cause, sentencing them to painful deaths.

“God, Kyungsoo, way to be a downer,” Jongdae tells him, punching his arm as they sit next to each other in the cockpit.

“But it might happen,” Kyungsoo says. “It’s fairly possible.”

“And it’s fairly possible that it won’t, yeah?” Jongdae says, eyes on the screen before him. “So lighten up, will you?”

It’s easier said than done but when it all comes down to it, Chanyeol manages to calm his nerves for the most part. He’s surprisingly sensible about all of this, surprisingly calm and collected; the trajectories of their emotions had apparently gone in separate directions. It’s this -- seeing Chanyeol’s demeanor -- that makes Kyungsoo feel more assured.

But he grows especially nervous, of course, when they land on the snowy landscape of Hallasan. Baekhyun and Jongdae leave the ship first, Sehun in between them holding their hands.

Snow flies against Kyungsoo’s goggles, blurring his sight, and the sheer cold brings his heart to a palpitation.

They leave their ship in an open cave. From afar, there’s a dome of light, one they now know is the creation of a group of human experiments who have found refuge in a largely uninhabited planet.

Kyungsoo and Chanyeol share a look as light comes their way. Their eyes are hidden behind the dark lens of their goggles but Kyungsoo knows they share the same expression of absolute determination, anxiety be damned.

“This is it,” Kyungsoo says, breathing hard.

Chanyeol wraps Kyungsoo’s waist around his arm.

“This is home,” Chanyeol says, ever sure of himself.

Kyungsoo heaves and grips Chanyeol’s hand, plastered onto his waist.

“No escapes,” Kyungsoo says.

As Kyungsoo watches the dome come into clearer view, he swallows and remembers exactly why they traveled all this way, why they sacrificed so much just to be here.

What he had for all those five years on his own, for all of the years he spent hopping from one city to another without clear ambition, without anything to restrain him. That wasn’t freedom. What he and Chanyeol share on their day to day comes much closer to it.

And now, as they approach a new life, Kyungsoo finds himself tasting it on his tongue: a place to live out his days, an end to his search for purpose, and an empowering force deep within his soul, which is, of course, everything that freedom is.

 

**fin.**

**Author's Note:**

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